Gold from green; birthing, center seeks LEED certification.

Lilker Associates Consulting Engineers, P.C. is a member of the project team leading the effort to seek LEED Gold certification for the New Space for Women's Health, New York's first independent, stand-alone birthing center. With architects Perkins + Will, Lilker is designing the 8,000 square-foot sustainable facility--which is being retrofitted from an existing parking facility on 30th Street in midtown Manhattan--using high efficiency HVAC equipment and innovative energy-saving ideas to support a sustainable, environmentally friendly facility.

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Steven D. Friedman, HFDP, director of engineering for Lilker's Healthcare Division and the project manager, is the first New York State engineer to be certified as a Healthcare Facility Design Professional by the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE).

Robert M. Hanifin, LEED AP (LEED-certified accredited professional), is assisting Steve as project manager, and spearheading the HVAC design.

Dynamic teamwork and an innovative approach to healthcare engineering and sustainable "green" design is the focus of Lilker's efforts.

"We are emphasizing a relaxed and warm setting with heating, ventilation, air-conditioning and plumbing features designed to provide maximum comfort and patient safety while conserving energy," Friedman says.

"The project," adds Hanifin, "will include high efficiency heat pumps, creative heat recovery systems, the possibility of utilizing 'green' power, low-flow water reducing plumbing fixtures, and energy-saving lighting equipped with sensors that reduce interior lighting relative to available natural light. We're also considering harvesting wind power through turbines to create our own energy, and utilizing solar heating panels to aid in the process of providing hot water to further reduce energy consumption."

The New Space for Women's Health, a project of Friends of the Birth Center, grew out of the community of the Elizabeth Seton Childbearing Center, which, challenged by insurance demands and increasing costs, closed in 2003.

The new center, scheduled to open in 2010, will provide a nurturing environment where midwives, mental health professionals, family educators and a community of other professionals will offer more than 17,000 women and families prenatal and postpartum care, childbirth education, gynecological services, social work, and psychological care in a welcoming and environmentally sustainable setting.

"Our goal is to create a powerful catalyst for improving the quality of health and maternity care for the women of New York City by offering broader healthcare options," said Rebecca Benghiat, executive director of the New Space for Women's Health. "So it is also a priority for us to create a space that is environmentally sustainable--it's an extension of our commitment to creating a safe and healthy setting for women's comprehensive health needs."

The three-floor facility will house a reception area, birthing rooms and space for pre/postnatal health programs.